(2003) February 14 and 15  Maida on Maida in the Universe – Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre, Washington, DC.  Premiere: One-woman show created and performed by Maida Withers with live music for trombone by New York/West Virginia  composer/musician Cam Miller.  In Maida on Maida in the Universe, Withers’ life and artistic work parallel current scientific ideas and theories of the origin and fate/demise of the universe with open, sometimes entertaining, curiosity.

Who hasn’t dreamed of traveling into outer space and experiencing the wonders of our universe?  In Maida on Maida in the Universe, Withers travels with us through her “universe” – her artistic history that includes more than 30 years of cutting-edge dance and performance art.  Withers juxtaposes her life’s work as an artist with theories of the origin and demise of the universe, using images from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope to explore intersections between art, science and technology. https://science.nasa.gov/mission/hubble/

A large-scale installation of screens display a collection of photographs and video of diverse dances accompanied, frequently, by “stream of-consciousness thoughts” typed on a computer, in real time, by Withers at a desk on stage and projected during the performance.  Meanwhile, Withers engages in an ongoing spontaneous verbal dialogue with the audience.  Maida on Maida in the Universe introduces those, unfamiliar with her work,  to a diverse, sometimes controversial, entertaining, bold and off-beat body of work.  Maida on Maida in the Universe is an interactive performance that engages imagination beyond the boundaries of our planet and into our future in the universe.

Cam Miller, composer/musician, created and performs music “live” for trombone combined with an electronic composition . The haunting, tonal register, of the Trombone, as the voice of the universe, and NASA’s astonishing visuals create an unusual and engaging environment for dance.

“As a child, sometimes at night, I would sit, alone, on the wooden fence at the top of our ski hill, above the “Salem Pond,” and  ponder creation stories from science related to the universe, extreme stories from religion, and stories imagined.” (Maida Rust Withers)

Promotion Card:  Maida on Maida in the Universe

Photo Below:  Adam Peiperl, promotion card, Maida on Maida in the UniversePhoto Below: Adam Peiperl Montag – Maida Withers, NASA imagesPhoto Below: Adam Peiperl     Figure:  Maida Withers

Projected Film Installation – excerpts from a selection of Maida Withers choreography projected onto stretched fabric screens on stage for Maida on Maida in the Universe

Photos Below:  Maida on Maida in the Universe – performance

NATURE’S WAY: The week of the performance, Washington, DC experienced an  extreme ice storm.  Thick layers of ice covered all sidewalks and roads.  Driving was not an option for any patrons.  Consequently, If you could not travel on the subway, you would not be able to attend the  performance in downtown Washington, DC. The city was at a complete standstill.

What the press is saying

...in its 30th year, a remarkable achievement for the rather low-profile group that has fearlessly tackled political and societal issues, incorporated laser and computer technology and brought modern dance to underserved corners of the world." Sarah Kaufman, The Washington Post. Sarah Kaufman

"Withers presents Maida on Maida in the Universe. The show features an installation of screens that mix images from Withers' extensive body of work with pictures from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope--juxtaposing the larger universe with her own. The 30-plus-year dance veteran is known for playing with relationships between art, science, nature, and man--maybe she's just so avant-garde that it simply appears she can predict the future. Or perhaps she really does possess a morbid clairvoyance--the dance world's own Nostradamus." Sarah Godfrey, Washington City Paper

"EVEN AMONG the grandes dames of dance in Washington, it takes chutzpah
to put on a one-woman show about yourself, your life's work and your
place in the universe. But dancer, choreographer and George Washington
University professor Maida Withers claims it's all in good fun. "This is
sort of campy," Withers says. "It's humorous, putting myself on the spot
-- and it's intended to be ludicrous."

A one-woman retrospective, "Maida on Maida in the Universe" brings
together 30 years of Withers's dances, plus live electronic and trombone
music from composer Cam Millar, archival videos and photos of and by
Withers and images of the galaxy from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. The
program takes place Friday and Saturday at GWU's Dorothy Betts Marvin
Theatre.

Withers, 65, who formed the Dance Construction Company in 1974, has been
pushing dance's technological envelope for decades. In the '70s, "Laser
Dance" included light sculptures by laser artist Rockne Krebs. "Bog
Works" and "Stall" experimented with moving loudspeaker installations by
composer John Driscoll. By the 1980s, Withers revisited "Laser Dance"
with original music by Bob Boilen, and she began collaborating with
visual artists, composers and her dancers, using video and computer
technology.

Her 1988 "Utah Project" featured dances videotaped outdoors and then
shown in a theater with art installations and live dancers. Later,
Withers joined with self-described cyber-world artist Tania Fraga for
"Aurora 2001, Dance of the Auroras/Fire in the Sky."

Withers says she's fascinated with the intersections between art and
science, technology and intuitive performance. "My works are so very
physical, very intricate, yet at the same time I like that juxtaposition
between the human and the nonhuman," she explains.

Most recently, that juxtaposition has become computer generated. Because
computers now play such an integral role in everyday life, this weekend
Withers puts a computer on stage into which she will type a stream of
consciousness monologue that the audience will see via stage
projections.

"I'm trying to look at how we as humans can be interactive with
technology," Withers says. Thus the choreographer seeks out
collaborators, musicians, videographers, visual artists and computer
artists who share her inquisitive nature. She also plans to take
questions from her audience during the performance.

"That's the interactive aspect, for me," Withers says. "I'm taking a lot
of risks -- revealing my ideas, my questions with society. I'm very
outspoken, very visceral. Looking at my life, I have this energy, this
passion. I'm not the punk I once was. This is the place I am at right
now. I don't know where I'll be tomorrow."

MAIDA ON MAIDA IN THE UNIVERSE -- Friday and Saturday at 8, Marvin
Theatre, 800 21st St. NW. Call 202-432-7328.

http://www.washingtonpost.com Lisa Traiger